Since arriving in Rwanda, everyone has been telling us that we have to go climb Mount Kigali. Finally, last week we got the chance to check it out for ourselves.
Mount Kigali is on the southwestern edge of the city, we started in the Nyamirambo area of town. Mount Kigali stretches north to cover other Kigali neighbourhoods and I think it can be approached from different areas, but the most common access point is through Nyamirambo. Be warned that Nyamirambo is a large area so, you’ll probably want to take a moto or taxi straight to the bottom of Mount Kigali. Sun City Hotel is a good landmark that most moto drivers know. Or, if you want to start your hike more towards the bottom of the hill, the Kigali Stadium (known more commonly as ‘Stade Nyamirambo’) is another good landmark to ask for.
From the Stadium, we headed uphill through a small neighborhood with lots of shops and pygmy goats lining the dirt roadside. Once we started walking up the steep slope we realized that we were on the base of the mountain, more of a huge hill really. If you’re new to town, beware that the high elevation will leave you gasping for air.
As you go up, the shops and people dwindle out and we cut off from the main road and bushwhacked our way to the top. If you follow signs for Fazenda Senga you will eventually get all the way to the top. It’s about a 20 minute hike all the way and pretty steep, but in Oregon we would just call it a hill. From the top, you can see a view of the entire city of Kigali. It’s gorgeous, there’s lots of farmland, coffee, tea, and beans being tended by local farmers. It’s so peaceful and quite. Especially compared to the noise and excitement of Kigali. It’s a nice place to go for a hike and get away from the city.
The Adventures of Paul and Sue 